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It was never going to be a perfect day, with forecast for thunderstorms and heavy showers all over Scotland, but as we had some time to spend, we wanted to spend it outdoors. So what should we do if not hillwalking?
Well, we could always go to Cruden Bay
And when visiting the area it would be a sin to miss New Slains Castle!
We had been here before and explored the ruins and walked the coastal path to the Bullers of Buchan, where we spent some time photographing birds (old report
HERE). This time, we decided, after visiting the castle, we would drive the short distance and park at the car park by the Bullers of Buchan. Then we planned to walk to Boddam and back, exploring the cliffs, taking photos and observing the wildlife.
The plan almost worked. We had to turn back just short of Boddam due to a coming storm, but I could still classify this day as a successful. The cliffs in this area are stunningly beautiful and the unsettled weather only added some adrenaline rush to the adventure!
But first, New Slains Castle. Might not be the oldest ruin in Aberdeenshire, but my oh my, isn't it impressive. There was a lot of talk about converting it to posh apartments about a decade ago, but to be honest, I don't think it will ever happen, especially that last year New Slains was
officially granted listed status. On the other hand, the ruins are much neglected and I wish somebody would take care of this place, clean all the mess inside and make this a proper tourist attraction. I wouldn't even mind paying for a ticket if the castle was brought back to life, even as a ruin.
At the moment, the building is still free and open for visitors at their own risk (it is dangerously close to a high sea cliff, so care should be taken when exploring it). Not much has changed since our previous visit in 2011. It's still the same old Dracula's castle as they call it. I'm not sure if the supposed connection to Bram Stoker is true, but looking at the ruin from the outside it is easy to imagine Count Dracula skulking around at night time
The ruin as seen from the east:
The plan of this building is so complicated that one might easily get lost here... From the east, we entered through a door in one of many small, round towers:
According to "The Castles of Scotland" by Martin Coventry:
"The castle now consists of buildings around the central courtyard, with adjoining ranges. The building was greatly altered in 1664, when a corridor was inserted within the courtyard, and was substantially rebuilt and granite faced in 1836."There is plenty to explore here and many hidden corners, some of the small towers still have staircases inside:
I could only imagine how grand this place could be as a proper tourist attraction. Such a shame it is left to rot
not to mention definitely non-medieval rubbish scattered inside
Nevertheless, still impressive...
A few more snaps of New Slains - we spent over an hour lurking around and as weather was nice at the moment, we took advantage of the good light for photos.
Inside the main tower, which is possibly the oldest part of the structure. Again, quoting "The Castles of Scotland":
"The castle incorporates part of the basement of the 16th century tower house of Bowness"Hard to say which part of the basement is the old bit, the cellars under the big tower are partially flooded and impossible to explore, but there are hidden corners here where a ghost (or a vampire) could easily hide from daylight
Kevin pretending to be The Prince in the Tower
The ruin from the south:
Looking south along the coast from the shore near New Slains Castle:
I'm glad this building now has the listed status, but how long is it going to survive, is a good question. It's such an iconic place and it would be a real shame if it fell to pieces
After a lengthy photo session in the castle, we drove the short distance north to the Bullers of Buchan where we indulged in another long snapping session, this time with the sea birds. No gannets here, sadly (they are my favourite sea birds!) but a lot of kittiwakes, guillemots and cormorants, not to mention seagulls, many of them still on nests and caring for their chicks.
The collapsed sea cave of the Bullers:
The first nest I spotted, was a family of cormorants:
Countless kittiwakes tended to their offspring:
We moved on to the next inlet, where we spotted a colony of guillemots. At first glance they were all adults but after a few minutes of patient watching, we spied a few chicks, too.
The inlet:
Guillemots and cormorants:
More guillemots:
A guillemot chick guarded by adults:
A family dispute:
A cormorant taking a swim:
We continued slowly on the path along the cliffs, discovering more wonderful views and more picturesque cliffs to photograph with almost every step:
The stony beach of North Haven:
There were hundreds of sea birds everywhere, but the wildlife was not restricted to the feathery friends only. Many insects buzzed and fluttered about, including several ringlets, one especially was keen to pose for photos:
Soldier beetle on a flower:
Suddenly a moth landed on my hand. I snapped a picture and then carefully placed the wee creature on vegetation. Later I identified it as a burnet. There are several species of burnets and all very similar so I can't say for sure which one exactly it was, but a lovely encounter nevertheless
This sea stack is called Old Ship:
Three guillemots, a cormorant and a herring gull with a juvenile:
Looking back south along the cliffs, New Slains Castle now a tiny shape on the horizon to the right:
Zoom to New Slains and the windfarms beyond...
The next inlet and more birds!
Kittiwakes taking care of their family business:
The path continues past the old quarries, several of them flooded now, forming interesting, rocky amphitheaters:
Sadly as we walked past the quarries, the first drops of rain fell from the sky. We were prepared for showers, so stopped and put on waterproof layers, but a few drops of water were not enough a deterrent to stop us! We continued our cliff explorations, taking photos in breaks between the showers:
Cliffs near Long Haven:
